The ghostly apparition of seasonal retail is transforming from spooky to merry, as Spirit Halloween unveils its plans to haunt the holiday season with a new Christmas-themed venture.
Spirit Halloween, the pop-up chain known for its ghoulish takeover of vacant storefronts each fall, is expanding its empire into a winter wonderland. The company has announced the launch of “Spirit Christmas,” a festive spin-off that will keep the lights on in select locations long after the jack-o’-lanterns have been extinguished.
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This yuletide experiment will see 10 Spirit Halloween stores, primarily on the East Coast, morph from haunted houses to Santa’s workshops. The inaugural Spirit Christmas location will open its doors on October 18 in Mays Landing, New Jersey, with the remaining nine stores following suit in early November, according to Consumer Affairs.
Kym Sarkos, Spirit’s executive vice president, expressed optimism about the new venture, stating, per The New York Times, “Spirit Christmas is a new concept for us, and we’re hopeful it will resonate with our customers.” She added that visitors can expect to “wander through a life-sized gingerbread village, where you can mail your letter to Santa at the North Pole and find out whether you’ve been naughty or nice.”
Spirit Christmas stores promise to offer more than just tinsel and ornaments. According to the company’s website, shoppers can expect “stocking stuffers, holiday apparel, fun gifts, unique decor, plus all the special trimmings for creating an unforgettable Christmas.” Slate reports that the stores will also feature photo opportunities with Old Saint Nick himself, free of charge – a modern twist on the traditional mall Santa experience.
The transition from cobwebs to candy canes reflects a broader trend in the retail landscape. As brick-and-mortar stores struggle to compete with the convenience of online shopping, creating unique, in-person experiences has become crucial. Spirit Halloween’s success in the Halloween market – with 1,525 locations this year, up from just over 1,000 a decade ago – demonstrates the potential of this approach, per the outlet.
The move into Christmas retail comes at a time when holiday shopping habits are evolving. The National Retail Federation reported that Halloween spending alone was expected to reach $11.6 billion in 2024, albeit slightly down from the previous year’s record high of $12.2 billion. Spirit’s expansion could tap into a lucrative market with Christmas traditionally being an even bigger retail event.
However, Spirit Christmas faces stiff competition. Retail giants like Target, Amazon, and Walmart have already been preparing for the holiday season for months. A Spirit Halloween spokesperson told CNBC via Consumer Affairs, “Our goal is to create a festive retail experience that captures the spirit of the season, much like we do for Halloween.”
The company’s ability to secure short-term leases and mobilize a seasonal workforce has been key to its Halloween success. This model could prove equally effective for the Christmas season, allowing Spirit to capitalize on the holiday shopping frenzy without the long-term commitments that burden traditional retailers.
Spirit Halloween’s cultural impact has grown beyond its retail presence. The brand has become a subject of internet memes and even featured in a recent Saturday Night Live skit. In the sketch, an employee played by Heidi Gardner quips, “Since 1983, Spirit Halloween has been helping our struggling communities by setting up shop in every vacant building in the country for six weeks… And then bouncing.”
In response to the parody, Spirit responded with a witty retort on social media. “We are great at raising things back from the dead @nbcsnl,” Spirit’s social staff wrote. The company posted a photo of a Spirit costume package titled “Irrelevant 50-year-old TV show,” with a description noting that the outfit came with “Dated references,” “Unknown cast members,” and “Shrinking ratings.”
